If you’re looking at web design purely as a job, the earning potential is decent, but it won’t make you rich on its own. Salaries vary depending on your experience, skill level and where you’re based.
Entry-Level Web Designer (0-2 years experience) – £20,000 to £30,000 per year
Mid-Level Web Designer (3-5 years experience) – £30,000 to £45,000 per year
Senior Web Designer (5+ years experience) – £45,000 to £60,000+ per year
While these are respectable earnings, they won’t make you financially free unless you move beyond just having a job.
The key to unlocking serious wealth in web design is to go beyond employment and explore more profitable paths like freelancing, agency work, or digital products.
Freelancing is where the earning potential in web design really starts to take off. Unlike a job where you’re stuck with a salary, freelancing lets you set your own rates and scale your income based on your skills and demand.
A beginner freelance web designer might charge £500 per project, while an experienced freelancer can charge £5,000 or even £20,000+ for a single website. The difference is in skill, branding, and positioning.
The biggest advantage of freelancing is that your income isn’t capped. The more high-value clients you work with and the better your reputation, the more you can charge. Some freelancers even hit six figures per year by taking on just one or two high-ticket projects per month.
However, freelancing also comes with challenges. You need to market yourself, find clients, and handle everything from sales to taxes. It’s not easy, but for those who master it, freelancing can be a highly profitable way to make money from web design.
Here’s a guide on freelancing pricing strategies: freelancepricing.com
While freelancing can be lucrative, it still has one major limitation: your time. Even if you charge £10,000 per project, there’s a limit to how many websites you can build in a year. This is why the richest web designers don’t just freelance—they build businesses.
Hire a Team – Instead of doing everything yourself, bring in other designers, developers, and marketers so you can focus on growing the business instead of just building websites.
Create Recurring Revenue – Instead of charging a one-time fee, offer ongoing website maintenance, SEO, and hosting so clients pay you every month. This creates predictable income and allows you to scale.
Target High-Paying Clients – Instead of working with small businesses that only want to spend £500, focus on industries with bigger budgets like law firms, healthcare, and e-commerce. These clients will pay more for quality work.
Sell Digital Products – If you’ve built a great website for one client, why not turn it into a template and sell it to hundreds of others? Selling themes, templates, or even design courses can generate passive income.
Many agency owners hit six or seven figures per year by following these steps. The key is to move away from trading time for money and start thinking like a business owner.
Here is some web design business scaling strategies: businessgrowthweb.com
The real way to get rich in web design is through passive income—making money without constantly working. Instead of only earning when you take on a new client, you can create digital products or automated services that sell over and over again.
Sell website templates and themes on platforms like ThemeForest or Creative Market
Create online courses teaching others how to design websites
Offer subscription-based website services (e.g., DIY website builders for small businesses)
Build and monetise niche websites that generate affiliate income
Many designers make £10,000+ per month selling digital products alone. The beauty of passive income is that you earn money even while you sleep.
Check out these passive income strategies for designers: webpassiveincome.com
Yes—but only if they think beyond just designing websites. The web designers who become wealthy:
Run successful web design agencies
Sell digital products and courses
Offer high-value services like custom software development
Build and sell profitable online businesses
It’s not about just being good at design—it’s about understanding business, marketing and scalability. If you can combine great design skills with smart business strategies, there’s no limit to how much you can earn.
Successful web designers who made millions: designsuccess.com
Web design alone won’t make you rich—but the opportunities within web design absolutely can. If you’re willing to move beyond traditional employment and start thinking like a business owner, web design can be a highly profitable, scalable career.
If you want a stable job, web design offers a solid salary.
If you want high earnings, freelancing is the way to go.
If you want to get rich, build an agency, sell digital products, or scale into passive income streams.
Ready to build a website that brings in serious money? Get in touch with Uniswell today!
Yes, many web designers become millionaires by building agencies, selling templates/courses, or creating scalable online businesses.
Salaried web designers make a comfortable living, but freelancers and business owners can earn six figures or more depending on their niche and services.
Absolutely! You can work for a company, freelance, or start your own agency. The more valuable your skills, the higher you can charge.
Yes! Web design has low startup costs and high profit margins, especially when you scale through passive income or agency growth.
We believe that a great website is more than just pixels and code—it’s a powerful business tool. Based in Dorset, we specialise in web design, development and digital marketing to help businesses stand out and grow online.
We’re here to make growing your online presence as smooth and stress free as possible. Whether you’re looking for a standout website, reliable hosting, or a full digital strategy, we’d love to hear from you.
Empowering businesses with innovative digital solutions to inspire, connect, and grow.
